Crescent School is an independent elementary and secondary boys school in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It teaches boys from Grades 3 to 12. Established in 1913 by John William James, the school was situated in several locations in its early years. In 1933, Susan Denton Massey, the aunt of Governor GeneralVincent Massey, gifted land to the school, making its expansion possible.[1] Today, Crescent School is located in midtown Toronto, between Lawrence Park and the Bridle Path, operating under the Advanced Placement program with a reputation as a leader in boys' education.[2]

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Crescent School was founded in September 1913 by its first headmaster, John William James, known as "Jimmy" to his friends. He opened his school to a group of buzzing boys at his home at 43 Rosedale Road. The school experienced many changes and financial difficulties in its early days, however the school persisted and became a leader in Canadian boys education. The school moved to its current location on the old Frank P Wood estate in 1970.

Each student at Crescent is a member of one of six distinct houses. Each house is named after notable figures in Canadian history. Each house is governed by a head house captain in the Upper School, while each grade appoints their own captains. The six houses are:

Cartier (Gray)

Hudson (Yellow)

Mackenzie (Light Blue)

Massey (Dark Blue)

Simcoe (Purple)

Wolfe (Red)

The houses compete for points which culminate in a year end award to whichever house has the most points. The house system is an integral part of Crescent life, and so it has been since its very beginnings when the system was first implemented in the decades after its founding. The original two houses were named the Greens and Greys, respectively.

Lau Family Wing In 2011, Crescent opened the Lau Family wing, a C$10.6 Million dollar addition adjacent to the existing Center for Creative Learning (CCL). The Building was named in honour of Ming Wai Lau (Class of 1997),[3] and the Joseph Lau Luen Hung Family Charitable Trust, the main benefactors. Most Middle School classes, as well as some Upper School classes, will be held in the Lau Family Wing.

Fieldhouse In 2002, Crescent opened the "Fieldhouse", a large, white, tent-like structure the size of three average gymnasiums. This replaced the three outdoor tennis courts that had been situated there before.

Latifi Family Commons In September 2014, the Latifi Family Commons, a $3 million (CDN) facility housing Crescent programs including University Counselling and Crescent Student Services was opened. It is named for Michael and Marilena Latifi, current parents at Crescent School.

Crescent teams include basketball, hockey, baseball, track and field, rugby, volleyball, badminton, tennis, swimming, soccer, skiing, table tennis, snowboarding, cross country and Ultimate Frisbee. A recent addition to the school's facilities is two artificial turfplaying fields. The school has a longstanding record of success in both CISAA [1] and OFSAA [2].

In the 1920s and 1930s, the Crescent School held athletic events with other private and independent schools in the Greater Toronto Area. These events were often reported on in the Globe & Mail newspaper; the soccer match between the Crescent School and Appleby College held on November 30, 1937 ended in a tie.[4] During this interwar era, the School held an annual boxing tournament with, "...Parents, Old Boys and friends of the School..." invited to attend.[5] In addition to boxing, soccer, and cricket, the School also held a "annual aquatic gala" where prizes were given to the best boys.[6]

Since 2000, Crescent has been involved with the FIRST Robotics Competition FIRST Robotics[3][4], an international competition in which professionals and high school students are teamed together to solve an engineering design problem in an intense yet cooperative way. In 2003, the Crescent FIRST Robotics Team won the regional Chairman's Award in recognition of the contribution it has made to the field of Robotics. In 2011, Crescent's Team 610, placed second in both the Waterloo and Greater Toronto Area and placed fifth at the World Championship in St. Louis. Crescent has also participated in another competition, RoboFest. In 2013, Crescent placed first at the BAE Systems Granite State competition. In the same year, the team went on to become the 2013 FIRST Robotics World Champions.

Outreach

Crescent's Outreach initiative emphasizes local, national and international opportunities that take an experiential learning and community service approach. Crescent School has many growing outreach projects in Toronto and around the world. In Toronto, Upper and Middle School students can participate in a tutoring program where they tutor students at two Toronto elementary schools, Willow Park and Firgrove public schools. In order to graduate from the School, students must complete forty hours of volunteer service and are issued a Volunteer Service Handbook to assist them in completing their volunteer work. During the 2013/2014 school year, Crescent students participated in International Outreach trips to Nicaragua, Tanzania, India, South Africa, and Cambodia.